Marekani wakosa imani na sudani kusini.soma zaid.

The United States is evacuating non-
emergency staff from its embassy in
South Sudan, after an escalation of
fighting in the capital that has killed
scores including a Chinese U.N.
peacekeeper.
The State Department said the security
situation in Juba Sunday had seen a
"sudden and serious deterioration," with
clashes between government and
opposition forces breaking out into
"general fighting."
The United Nations Security Council,
which held a closed door meeting in New
York Sunday, expressed "shock and
outrage" at attacks on civilians and U.N.
compounds, saying they may constitute
war crimes.
It called on President Salva Kiir and his
rival Vice President Riek Machar to
control their respective forces, prevent the
spread of violence and genuinely commit
themselves to the implementation of a
ceasefire and peace agreement.
Fighting first broke out Thursday, with
skirmishes between troops loyal to Kiir
and soldiers who support his deputy
Machar.
Fighting flared again Sunday, with gunfire
exchanged outside a U.N. building, after
a lull Saturday when the young country
celebrated the fifth anniversary of its
independence from Sudan.
"What we may be seeing is a total
breakdown of command and control in
Juba," said Kate Almquist Knopf, director
of the Africa Center for Strategic Studies.
"We need to watch carefully for whether a
cycle of reprisal killings by either side
begins in the next few days."
Japan's ambassador to the U.N., Koro
Bessho confirmed the death of the
Chinese soldier. Chinese and Rwandan
peacekeepers also sustained injuries.
Death toll unclear
Earlier, South Sudan's information
minister said the government is "in full
control" of the capital, Juba, despite the
United Nations reporting that the
weekend's deadly violence had carried
into Sunday.
Church services were interrupted by
fighting between troops loyal to the
president and those backing the vice
president, but the violence has since
subsided, Information Minister Micheal
Makuei Lueth told South Sudan
Broadcasting Corporation.
Lueth said President Kiir would issue a
permanent and unilateral ceasefire before
Sunday's end and urged his rival, Vice
President Machar, to do the same
"because we want to save the lives of the
people of South Sudan."
How many have been killed in fighting
between factions loyal to Kiir and Machar
is unclear. Though one estimate puts the
death toll close to 150, other reports
indicate more than 270 have been killed.
CNN is working to confirm an exact death
toll.
Gunfire
Gunfire from "heavy weaponry" was
exchanged for much of Sunday outside a
U.N. building on the outskirts of Juba,
the U.N. mission to the country said.
The mission sent out a series of tweets at
about 8:25 a.m. (1:25 a.m. ET)
describing "gunshots" and a "heavily
armed exchange" outside a U.N.
compound.
The U.S. Embassy issued an alert saying
that fighting between government and
opposition forces was ongoing at the
U.N. mission's headquarters, the Jebel
area of the city and near the airport.
The U.N. mission in South Sudan, known
as UNMISS, said that 1,000 internally
displaced people had fled its protection
as violence hit areas near their camps.
"Both UNMISS compounds in Juba have
sustained impacts from small arms and
heavy weapons fire."
The United Nations urges all parties to
respect the sanctity of the United Nations
and condemns any deliberate targeting of
United Nations premises and its
personnel," it said in a statement.
Helicopters, gunships, tanks
The weekend violence erupted when Kiir
and Machar were meeting to discuss
previous clashes between their forces.
Outside the presidential compound where
the meeting took place, a gunbattle
kicked off.
Pockets of violence broke out Thursday
evening, and by Friday, soldiers loyal to
Kiir exchanged heavy gunfire with others
backing Machar, in a bloody skirmish that
left almost 150 people dead by Saturday,
according to Machar's spokesman, James
Gatdet Dak.
CNN has been unable to independently
verify the exact death toll.
The Indian Embassy in South Sudan
advised its citizens "not to panic" and to
stay indoors. Many of the UNMISS staff
members are Indian nationals.
A U.N. base was attacked last week.
"We heard heavy artillery fire at the U.N.
(base), and that continued for about an
hour or so and then stopped. It was
coming form the outer perimeters of the
compound," said Shantal Persaud, acting
spokeswoman for the U.N. mission.
Helicopter gunships were seen in the sky,
and tanks rumbled through the streets.
Under the peace deal, both government
and opposition troops were stationed in
Juba, a plan which many criticized
because it put both forces in close
proximity.
Flights canceled
Kenya Airways, which operates two flights
a day to Juba, said it was suspending all
flights to the city because of an
"uncertain security situation," while
Britain's Foreign Office advised against
all travel to South Sudan, saying "the
security situation in Juba has
deteriorated" since Friday.
Two weeks ago, fighting in the western
city of Wau between government and
opposition troops displaced at least
70,000, according to the United Nations.
The country is nearly out of money
because its funds come almost
exclusively from oil revenue -- the value
of which has plummeted. People have
become desperate. In lieu of payment,
government soldiers have reportedly been
allowed to rape women, a U.N. report
said.
South Sudan gained independence in
2011 after 98% of the population voted to
break away from Sudan. The East African
nation, the youngest country in the world,
quickly fell into civil war that took on
ethnic undertones.
In December 2013, soldiers from Kiir's
Dinka ethnic group tried to disarm Nuer
soldiers perceived to be loyal to Machar.
Soldiers targeted Nuer civilians in the
ensuing fighting, Human Rights Watch
says.
The civil war was gruesome -- at least
50,000 were killed, more than 2 million
displaced, and nearly 5 million people
faced severe food shortages. Under a
peace deal signed in August, Kiir is the
president of the country and Machar is
the first vice president, but the fighting
hasn't stopped.
Source: CNN